Kado no Senso
by Narora Senoku
Summary: In this world ruled by the cards, a few select people rise up to uncover the truth of the card game known as 'Kards'. Narutox?
1. A Legend is Born

**A/n: Well, here is your remake. I hope this is better than the last one, because I thought it was horrible...**

_**Terms to Know:**_

_**Kard: **_The Kards are the main power of Kard Game. They can make the Senshu that uses them stronger, weaker, change the environment, or almost anything else in the game that can be changed, changed in their favor or another's.

_**Ketto Kard:**_ Translated as 'Duel Kard', are used to create a dome that players fight in. The Dome is large enough for 400 grown male adults to fit in it, with an equal distance of 5 feet between each and every one of them.

_**Senshu: **_Translated as 'Player' or 'Duelist', they are simply the players of Kard Game. Within this term, are ranks that all Senshu are broken into, from weakest to strongest: **_Senshu, Shokunin Senshu, Seisi Senshu, Ichi Senshu, O Senshu._**

_**Shokunin Senshu: **_Translated as 'Journeyman Duelist', they are a step above the Senshu. They are powerful Senshu that posses a good amount of Kards that they can use at least a little effectively.

_**Seisi Senshu: **_Translated as 'Elite Duelist', they are a step higher than Shokunin Senshu. They posses a good deal of Kards, some poweful, others not, that they can use at least somewhat effectively.

_**Ichi Senshu: **_Translated as 'City Duelist', They are special Senshu that have proven their strength and have taken over a City to defend, or are given the position through some kind of Vote, or family means.

_**O Senshu: **_Translated as 'King Duelist', they are Senshu that have defeated ALL of the Ichi Senshu, and have been inducted into the 'Hall of Fame', so to speak, and recognized as a very powerful, and feared, Senshu.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Bleach, Persona, Kingdom Hearts, Black Rock Shooter, or anything else that may appear in this FANfiction. UNLESS I have personally Created it and went through countless hours putting it together (like the story itself).**

_Kard no Senso_

_Chapter 1: A Legend is Born..._

Namikaze Naruto let out a small sigh, a smile on his face as he licked the recently bought Ice Cream in his hands. He let out a small laugh in joy as he fished more and more of the vanilla flavored, frosty treat before it melted on this hot summer's day.

"OI! You Namikaze?" A voice called that made Naruto freeze. His brow furrowed in annoyance as he turned around to find some random kid behind him. This seemed to happen regularly for the past few months. Ever sense his father had gone missing and they'd done a special of it on the news, people had been flocking to Kytou to see the famous 'Son of The Yellow Flash'.

Somehow they had gotten it into their heads that he was just as good as the _Legend_ Namikaze Minato, and thus, if they beat him, they would be better than Minato...

_Dumbasses..._ The lot of them...

Naruto sighed, and turned around, putting on his 'Game Face' as he knew what was coming next. He licked his ice cream a few more times, letting the kid's temper boil a bit, then opened his blue eyes and questioned. "What of it?"

The boy smirked, and pulled out the small Knife on his leg. He made a show of spinning it around a few times, before he took a stance. "Fight me." He didn't even wait for an answer as he brougth out his Ketto Kard _(Duel Kard)_, and swiped it through the strange glove he had on.

Naruto gave a loud, annoyed sigh, and finished his ice cream off rather quickly. He shifted his weight to his left foot, hands in his pockets. "And why should I?" It seemed to become routine to him now.

They Asked him his name. They pulled out a weapon and "boldly" asked the "fearsome" Namikaze Naruto to fight. He asked them why, and they said...

"Because if I can fight you and win, I'll be known as a great Senshu _(Player/Duelist)_!" Que the roll of Naruto's Eyes.

But, he stood by his word of his younger years, to "Not back down from a Duel! Ever!". He quickly pulled out his own Ketto Kard, swiped it through his Black Arm Guard, and watched as the black, liquid like Dome covered both of them.

The Dome was special. It was created along with the game to keep Senshu safe from death as they fought. While Pain and Experiences in the Dome where real, the Injuries you obtained, such as a missing eye or limb, or even being 'killed' inside it, were completely reversed if the Dome dropped.

However, the opposite was true was well. If the Dome is never put up, or is taken down when an injury is dealt, that Injury would be real, and some injuries in the game CAN be fetal. And so, it was made illegal to duel when the Dome wasn't put up.

Another feature of the Dome, though not as life threatening, was that, while the people inside the Dome only saw a black, 'half-sphere' cover them, the people outside only saw the outline of it, and could see everything that went on inside of it.

But, back to Naruto and The Boy, the Dome had finished, and the inside was illuminated by a strange light that seemed to come from nowhere.

The Boy, not even bothering to wait for Naruto to draw his weapons, charged him, setting all three of the Basic Three Kards on his glove. The boy's Strength, Speed, and Defenses soon took place after. Naruto's eyes narrowed as his hand swept inside of his black jacket, and his hand flashed.

The Boy dropped to the ground, holding his bleeding arm in his hand as he screamed. He was obviously new to the game, as he didn't seem to have any other Kards besides the Basic Three, but he seemed to be old enough to gain all Three...

Or he just bought them, or stole some other Senshu's and used them...

But, either way, Naruto had won the match, but the boy didn't give up. He stood back up, and put the Knife in his other hand, his left, and charged again.

Naruto, seeing that the boy wouldn't give up quite yet, took some... "drastic measures".

As the boy neared him, around the 5 foot mark, Naruto lifted the Gun in his hand, and the writing on it flashed, reading 'Ebony', before another flash appeared, from the point of the gun.

The Boy stopped as his eyes grew wide. A bloody hole in his forehead, and Naruto before him only had half lidded eyes.

It was at that moment, that the Dome was dropped, and the wounds The Boy had obtained from the fight vanished, leaving him completely healthy, save for his psyche and the fatigue he was feeling. Naruto, not feeling the slightest bit of remorse, turned away and continued walking.

People soon crowed around, whispering about how the 'Legendary Son of the Yellow Flash' had 'struck' again. Most of them just glared at his back as he walked away, while others glared at the boy on the ground, knowing what had happened and knew what Naruto went through on a daily basis.

_**.::Later**_

As Naruto walked, he paid no mind to anybody that was giving him glares, or sympathetic looks when he passed. He had finished off his Ice Cream in a hurry to fight that boy, and now he was left without anything. He_ hated_ when he had to finish food quickly. He couldn't really taste it then.

And they all, ALL, seemed to come fight him when he had food.

He let out a small groan in annoyance, soft enough others wouldn't hear. He looked at the ground as he walked, but paused when he reached a certain place. He looked up with Narrowed eyes at a large building to his right.

Above it, read "_Kytou City Duel Hall – Ichi Senshu: Kuroi Stella_" on a large plank. Where the name 'Kuroi Stella' was placed, seemed to be a great deal of scratches, as if it had just been changed to that name from another.

And it had. The last Ichi Senshu of Kytou had passed away, just a day before Naruto was to duel him. The man had a bad heart to begin with, but he refused to retire and kept on dueling.

Eventually, his heart had given out while he slept, and his daughter had taken over the Hall. There had been rumors of her being just as powerful, if not more, than her father.

Naruto brought his head down, and pulled out a slip of paper from his pocket. It had his name, and a time written on it.

_Name: Namikaze Naruto_

_Time to Duel: 12:00 PM_

Naruto put the slip into his pocket. His duel was tomorrow. And he wasn't sure if he was good enough. He had heard that almost 30-40% of the Ichi Senshu were at the Shokunin level, while Naruto himself just barely made that rank a week ago.

Truth be told, he was nervous. He wasn't know for winning Duels against females, nor did his record state anything about him witting against other Shokunin Senshu.

Speaking of his ranking, he pulled out his phone from his pocket, and opened it. After pushing a few buttons, he found that his Ranking had moved up by one.

Apparently that boy from before had _just_ enough points to put Naruto in the top 100 Duelists... even though he _was_ only Number 100.

When he searched the name 'Kuroi Stella', it showed a girl with black hair, blue eyes, and a dull emotionless face in the picture. The stats said she specialized in Gun Fights and Swordplay, just like Naruto did.

It only listed that she had the Velocity Up, and Endurance Up+ Kards in her possession. Any other Kards were unknown. Her Ranking: 80.

Damn, that was 20 Higher than him. Maybe he did have a chance? He was thinking she was somewhere around 50 or 40. Hell, a part of him thought she wasn't listed, being an Ichi Senshu and all...

He searched another name after a moment of hesitation. 'Uchiha Sasuke'. It came up with a Black Haired boy, with coal black eyes, and had the same expression as 'Kuroi Stella'. The Kards listed said he had 3 each of the Basic Three Kards, Offense Up, Endurance Up, and Velocity Up. Under Special, it listed Sharingan, Fireball, and Lion Combo. His Ranking: 60

When Naruto scrolled down, he found that Sasuke had already been here in Kytou and beat the Old man, just half a month before he had died.

Finally, he typed in the last name on his mind, 'Seta Souji'. This time, it showed a boy with a neutral face, and gray hair and eyes. It listed in the 'Announcement' area that he was a 'SUMMON SPECALIST'. That meant his 'deck' consisted of mostly Summons and Kards that dealt with Summons, either dispelling others, or making his own stronger in some way. He rarely fought well. His Ranking: 95

The last two names were names of his Rival/Best Friend. Sasuke, bluntly, was an ass. While Souji, was a good enough guy.

When they were younger, they all had the dream of being O Senshu, and had their own little group. Well, Naruto and Souji thought so, while Sasuke was sort of... forced into it.

While it looked like Naruto and Sasuke had a great dislike for each other, they found themselves often thinking of the other in a friendly way.

Naruto closed his phone, putting it back in his pocket, and continued on to his apartment. He would send his Mother a a letter tonight...

_**.::Next Day – In Front of the Hall::.**_

Naruto stood before the large doors that stretched almost 8 feet high. He seemed to be lightly sweating as he reached for the door and opened one. When he stepped inside, he was happy to find that they had Air Conditioning on.

He quickly glanced at the clock on his phone to find he was a tad early. He closed it, and continued on, showing his Senshu ID to the two policemen. They scanned his pass, and it came up with his information and the time he was registered to duel.

When he was granted access, he was told to wait in the stands for the recent fight to finish.

When he entered, he looked up at a large scoreboard on the eastern wall that showed two pictures. One was Kuroi Stella's, and it also showed her current active Kards. The other...

Naruto blinked. "Souji?" When he got out of his shock, he quickly ran up to the stands, finding there to be very little people, and looked down into the outline of a Dome. Inside, Kuroi Stella had a large gun pointed at Souji, who had his signature summon, Izanagi, out, but it was sparking, so that must mean that it was about to vanish from the amount of Damage it had taken.

Souji himself looked to be tired as well. He was panting extremely hard, and was down to a knee. He had bullet wounds all over him, but he looked prideful, because Stella seemed to have a great deal of Damage on her as well.

Naruto crossed his arms, giving a glance to the other people that were watching and counted about 10. Sasuke wasn't in the stands, but then again, he'd already been here and won, and it wasn't like he would wait up for Naruto and Souji. He was probably already in Rytou, getting ready for his Duel with their Ichi.

He quickly darted his attention back to the match when he saw Izanagi rush forward, dodging the hailstorm of bullets from Stella's gun. It was unlucky, however, when Stella managed to swipe a Kard through a belt on her waist, and the gun changed to a simple one, about the size of Naruto's 'Ebony' gun.

The girl aimed at the Summon's incoming sword, and fired a powerful shot at it, deflecting it from her, then aiming at it's head and firing again. The shot rang true, and blasted through it's head, causing it to burst and reform as a Kard with it's image on it, but with a large, slightly transparent X through the Kard.

When a Kard was 'X' ed out, it was unusable for a set duration, or for the whole match. And seeing as how Izanagi was an uncommon Kard, and a Summon no less, it was probably out for the match.

Souji looked like he was about to resort to Melee combat, when Stella aimed the Gun at him, and she must have had _damn_ good accuracy with it, if Souji froze from the distance she was at, which was a good 150 feet.

Souji was frozen for a few moments, before he held up a hand, his head down. "I give..." He said as the Dome dropped and their injuries faded. When a blue light shined down on each of them, cast by a Kard from the referee, they didn't look as tired. Hell, they looked fine.

When Souji left, he glanced around and found Naruto waving at him. He grinned, and quickly walked up to him in the stands. Naruto gave him a firm pat on the shoulder. "Nice Match. If I'd known you were Dueling, I'd have come sooner."

Souji gave him a half heart-ed shrug. "I didn't even know you were here till just now. Sorry."

Naruto waved it off, and they had a small chat before Naruto's name was called.

"Namikaze Naruto! Please Report to the Arena for your match!" The Ref called out. Naruto stood, gaining his and Stella's attention. He briskly walked down the stairs, Souji wishing him luck behind, and entered through the doors.

As he went through, he turned his head back to find the doors closing, and sealing themselves shut.

He turned around, and walked forward more, soon, he was the same distance away from Stella as Souji was at the end of his match, each an equal distance from the wall, with an equal distance between them.

The Ref quickly announced: "Combatants! Bow!" When he finished, Naruto and Stella both bowed from their positions, then stood straight again. The Ref once more spoke. "Raise the Dome!"

Naruto and Stella both quickly swiped their Ketto Kard through their Arm Guard or Belt. Not a moment later, the Dome sprang up around them, and only the Ref, Naruto, and Stella were left inside of it, hearing and seeing nothing but all three, and a Dome who's walls seemed to be moving as if they were liquid.

The Ref brought his hand down and quickly moved away. "Begin!"

Naruto watched as Stella wasted no time in bringing out the small Gun from before, and Firing at Naruto.

Said Whiskered boy, quickly began to run to his right, the shots hitting the ground before him. His hand flashed into his Jacket again, and pointed Ebony at Stella. Her eyes flickered for a moment, as if surprised to find anther gun user, but pushed that thought away when he pulled the trigger from his distance, and just missed her ear.

This made her rethink her plain, and she started to run to her right as well, and if you drew a line from where they started to the rest of their path, they would make a circle.

Finally, they stopped, Naruto where Stella stood, and vice versa. Naruto had his gun aimed at her, his body turned to the side as to make a smaller target, and the same with Stella. They seemed to be evenly matched when it came to this type of Gun...

This type...

Stella suddenly pulled out a Kard from the air and swiped it, and Naruto watched as the Gun changed into the large gun he had seen before in the fight with Souji. Stella pulled the trigger, and it began to reign bullets.

Naruto was forced to run as fast as he possibly could, a few bullets finding their way into his jacket's long tail. He abruptly pulled out a Kard from the air himself, and swiped it through his Arm Guard. The Kard glowed for a moment, before it vanished, as did Naruto himself.

When the Crowd let out a shocked gasp, they all turned to look at the Scoreboard, to find that he had used a "Velocity Up+" Kard.

Stella's eyes grew wider, wondering how a fresh Shokunin Senshu had gotten his hands on a Level 2 Kard. She had no time to wonder further, as the boy showed himself behind her, his Gun now replaced by a Black Katana.

It looked about 1 foot, to 1 and ½ feet longer than normal. It had no guard to speak of, and it's hilt was wrapped in bloodstained cloth, one end of the cloth hanging down from the blade and lashing in the air. He quickly struck down with it, to find that Stella had drawn her own Katana from her hip to block his own.

From that point on, Stella's gun changed back to its handgun form, the effects of the Kard must have worn off, and they began a clash of blades. The Sound of Steel hitting Steel rang out through the arena as they fought fiercely.

It wasn't long before they were both tired. Stella's eyes suddenly narrowed, and she quickly swiped a Kard. She moved away from him, faster than normal, and landed quite a distance away, almost the other side of the Dome.

She pulled out another Kard, this one Black in color. As she swiped it, it exploded into black dust and began to cover her body. "Desperation... Insane." Her voice rang out through the arena for the first time... well... sense Naruto had been here.

Said boy took his stance again, tighter now, more focused. His Velocity Up+ Kard had ran out long ago, and he was now down to about 4 Kards. And he had no clue how many Stella had left. But he almost wet his pants when the black energy cleared, and Stella stood there in a different getup now.

Her Left arm, and legs up to her knees were now covered in a heavy black armor, but didn't look like it would slow her down at all. Her Right hand had a _very_ large, and probably, _very_ powerful gun with a bladed tip. Closer inspection showed it had a great deal of lines through it, as if they could open up and fire shots from every part of the gun, in almost every direction..

Her hair seemed to grow out a bit more, and the longest part had a strange medal cylinder wrapped around it's base at her head, and oddly, looked like a hat or crown of some kind.

Naruto stopped his train of thought, and all others, when he suddenly crashed into the wall of the Dome, and spit up a good amount of blood from his mouth.

He slumped down, holding his stomach where he was punched, and glared up at Stella who stood over him, her left fist held up near her armored chest.

Naruto stood with a great deal of effort, and took up his stance again.

Desperation Kards... He'd heard about them, but never seen them.

They were powerful Kards that granted the user a great deal of power, in exchange for a One Hit deactivation somewhere on the User' s body. That place could be anywhere, and looked no different from anywhere else on the user... most of the time.

And this just happened to be one of those times, as nothing stood out to Naruto. So, that meant one thing...

He pulled out three Kards, swiping all Three of them, and putting two in reserve for later use. The one, he used right now.

It was a Firing Speed Kard. It would let him shoot Ebony at a faster rate, the second Kard was a secret at the moment, and the third Kard was a 'Reload' Kard, used to quickly reload Ebony, and it was also the only way...

He began to run away from her. She might be faster than him, but he could fire at a damn good pace now. In fact, he fired so fast, about 5 bullets hit her each second. When they hit her, she twitched away, the force of the shots moving her against her will.

But, she soon figured out his plan, and was on him again. Naruto put every ounce of energy he had in him into pulling the Trigger, and dodging her attacks to the best of his ability. He soon ran out of shots, the Gun was customized to have 50 rounds sealed away into a pocket dimension, and he used his Reload Kard.

A few minutes later, and he had almost run out of shots. He estimated about 4 left, before he needed another Reload Kard, and he wasn't aloud to use it until these last 4 were used up. He was panting extremely hard, and probably only had a little bit left in him.

He growled, and put his gun away, confusing Stella for a moment. When he pulled out his Katana, he grit his teeth as the last Kard he had in reserve appeared before his face.

It was silver, so it was an Ability Kard. It turned around, a rare sight, and faced Stella. She blinked when she saw it's face.

It vanished and Naruto's Katana was covered in the strangest things.

A Black Flame, with a red outline.

He brought it up, letting out a war cry, and brought it down again, but now, swinging it from left-to-right, letting a large black wave fly at Stella. The girl, standing only a few feet away, had not time to react as it hit her.

She let out a small sequel when her form vanished, the two belts that crossed her waist sparking where they met in an X before one was gone and one remained, in her normal form now.

She looked up, and found Naruto on his knees. He dropped the Katana, and looked like he was about to give up, when he quickly reached in, and pulled out Ebony again, pointing it at her head. His eyes were narrowed, and his mouth was leaking blood.

"...Give..." He almost whispered. Stella, in her shocked state, nodded slowly. The Dome was soon lowered, and their injuries with it. Naruto chose that moment to pass out, a small smile on his face. His last thought was...

_'Damn I'm lucky..._' then he saw black, and thought nothing...

_**.::Next Day – Noon::.**_

Naruto groaned as he opened his eyes to a white brightness. For a moment, he thought it was Heaven, then he realized it was just the Hospital. He quickly sat up, the injuries from his fight were fake after all, but it wasn't uncommon for Senshu of all types to be hospitalized from exhaustion.

He looked over at the door as it opened in mid stretch. Through it came Souji, who grinned. "Your awake? Didn't expect you to sleep for a whole day... you must have fought hard..." He seemed to mumble to himself than to Naruto.

The Whiskered Youth chuckled. "Heh, I didn't expect to win, truth be told. That was complete luck, if you ask me..." He sighed, scratching the backside of his head.

Souji grunted. "Well, at least you won, and here, I'm suppose to give this to you." He reached into his back pocket, and pulled out a White Kard.

He handed it to Naruto, who looked it over with fascination. It looked like a normal Kard, save for the symbol where the picture and name were suppose to be, that was of an eye with a flame burning out of it, pointing toward the upper right corner. It's description read: "_Proof of Victory at Kyoutou Hall – Presented To: Namikaze Naruto"_

He looked back at Souji, who held up his own 'Proof of Victory', that had his name on it. Naruto grinned and held his Kard up a bit higher. "So... we're one step closer to becoming a O Senshu...?" He grinned suddenly, and laughed cheekily.

"Yeah, but I got so bad news too." Souji started again. When he had Naruto's attention, he continued. "Well, you see, I know you want us to travel together and all, but, I really can't."

Naruto tilted his head, a questioning look in his eyes. "Well, I've been doing pretty good on my own, and I've recently learned that new Summon's don't show up unless there is a very small number, or no Humans at all."

Naruto held up his hand, a smile on his face. "Souji, if you don't wanna travel quite yet, just let me know. I'll be honest, I was hoping we could like we said in our younger days, but if you don't want to, I'm cool with it."

Souji smiled. "Hay, thanks man. Well, I guess I should head home then, gotta pack and all." He held out his fist, and Naruto held out his own, giving it a bump, and gave a wave as the boy walked out of his room.

It wasn't long before Naruto was released, showing he was very much healthy now that he had regained most of his energy, and also got ready to leave. It was time for him to head out to the next Hall, and Ichi Senshu.

_**.::3:00 pm – Exit of Kytou::.**_

Naruto looked up at the large gates that lead out of the City, and into the dense forest the town was known for. He smiled and began to walk through, but stopped when a hand grabbed his shoulder.

He turned, and almost freaked out when the last person he thought he would see was standing there.

He blinked. "M-Stella?! What are you... doing...?" He looked at the pack slung over her shoulder, and she gave a soft smile.

"Going with you." Was her simple answer. Naruto grunted. "...eh?"

She sighed lightly. "I'm not that cut out for being an Ichi Senshu... our fight showed me that."

Naruto blinked. "But... Ichi are defeated all the time, and that just makes them want to get better. So, why leave and abandon that position?" Stella gave him a sad look. "Truth be told, I've lost a great deal of my fights, to many Duelists that come around."

"Your friend, Souji, was the first battle I'd won all that day." That explained why there were so little people at the arena. "And the only reason I was chosen as the Ichi, was because I was the eldest Daughter."

Naruto's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Oh? You have siblings?" Stella seemed to brighten up at that. "Yeah. My younger sister. And by far, she's a better Senshu than me." Stella said this as if it didn't bother her in the least.

Naruto nodded slowly. Then he smiled. "Well, alright then. The more, the merrier I guess. So, I guess proper introduction is in order..."

He held his hand out to her, smiling. "Namikaze Naruto, future O Senshu, at your service!"

Stella smiled with a small laugh, and took his hand with her smaller one. "Kuroi Stella, former Ichi Senshu, nice to meet you."

Naruto nodded, and let go of her hand. "Alright then, well I guess we should set out for Ryoutou then, eh Stella-san?" He called over his shoulder as he began to walk. The girl gave a confident, 'Hai' behind him, and followed at his side.

_**.::Later::.**_

_'Date: April 8th_

_Time: 11:00 pm_

_Well, Stella told me it might be a good idea to keep a journal of my times as a Senshu, so I might as well do it, if only to look back in the future._

_We've recently set out for Rytou, but we still have about a day or two's walk ahead of us. We were able to stop at a shop near-by, and Stella decided to buy a new Kard, opting to save her Ryo and not get the Kard Pack._

_I got nothing, as I wanted to save Ryo for food..._

_Well, not much more to write about, so I'll leave it at that._

_Laters,_

_Namikaze Naruto'_

_**.::End::.**_

**A/n: Well, that's the end of Chapter 1. Might be a bit short, about a page or two, maybe even 1000 Words short, but, that's all for now. Hope you enjoy it.**

**Here's a little info, on the Kards that Naruto & Stella currently have:**

_**Naruto:**_

**Offense Up: (x1)**

**Velocity Up+: (x1)**

**Ability: Getsuga Tenshou (Reusable/x1)**

**Special: Reload (x3)**

**Special: Shot Speed (x1)**

_**Stella:**_

**Velocity Up: (x2)**

**Endurance Up+: (x1)**

**Special: Transform (Reusable/x1)**

**Desperation: Insane**

_Weakness: The 'X' where her two belts cross_


	2. Meeting Stratos

**A/n: Well, here's chapter 2. Hope you enjoy**

**(And on a side note, you can add to your record books that I completely agree with the current petition to STOP Fanfiction Admins from deleting stories!)**

"Talking" "_Emphasis_"

_'Thinking'_

"**Important Voice"**

"**_Kards Being Played_"**

**Disclaimer: I don't Own any of the characters used in this story, I only own the story itself, terms, and the game 'Kards'. (As well as any OC I have created)**

_Kado no Senso_

_Chapter 2: Meeting Stratos_

Naruto quickly threw the blade of his Katana in the path of a swing from a strange blade.

The blade he was currently locked with was a normal looking one... but only it's 'cutting part'. The hilt and below looked like some type of gun, and it functioned as both, as Naruto had seen a trigger near the man's hands, and when it was pulled, fire came from the blade that was pointed at him.

Obviously... not a normal Sword... Or gun... or... hell _anything!_

He, and the man –what was his name... Leon– both jumped away from their point of impact. While the brown haired male of about 20 or so pointed the... Bladegun... no, _Gunblade_ at him, he was quick to pull out a new Kard he had obtained from a shop in the town about a day from where they are now.

When Leon fired his... fire, Naruto swiped his Kard, and was soon protected by a spherical barrier. As the barrier dropped, a Kard formed in front of Naruto's face, and he grinned.

The Kard he had gotten wasn't just any Kard. It's name was _**Regain Barrier**_. It's effect, stated that when an attack hit it, it would restore a Kard that Naruto had already used earlier in the fight. The stronger the attack that hit, the better the Kard that came back (To strong – the barrier broke; To weak – No Kard). It didn't have any Level to speak of, and it's Range was User Only.

Naruto grabbed the Kard, and played it to reveal his _**Velocity Up +**_, and soon played it. Not long after it had vanished, Naruto's being did as well. He was soon behind Leon, his Katana raised in the air, and a Kard vanishing behind him, having just played it.

"_**Getsuga Tenshou!**_" Naruto roared as the black, fire like energy formed a crescent like shape in the air and struck Leon at point blank range. Just before the attack cut his body in half, the dome around them dropped revealing a forest clearing, and a dissipating black energy from where Leon was.

Naruto's shoulders heaved lightly as he panted. This man was good. He wasn't like the other armatures looking for quick fame, no, this guy didn't care about that. He was a true Senshu. And one of Shokunin rank as well. He played his Kards well, and laid great traps that almost cost Naruto.

But in the end, Naruto's quick combination of Speed and Swordplay/Gunsling-ing cut the man down bit-by-bit.

Naruto put his sword away into the special coat he was wearing, and soon walked over to the man with his hand out. Leon, having been stubborn before the match, quickly chose to take the other man's hand and let himself he heaved up to his feet.

Naruto smirked. "Not to bad. You almost had me a few times."

Leon, however, frowned slightly. "You're just saying that... I'm nowhere near your level. Ever trap you almost fell for, you got right out of or turned back on me..." This caused Naruto to sweatdrop, and scratch the back of his head, all the while mumbling, "Can't you take a compliment..."

Naruto heard footsteps and turned his head slightly to see Stella walking toward them, her black cloak billowing in the slight breeze.

Leon, took a deep breath, and nodded to them both. "Hay, thanks. I really needed that fight."

Naruto nodded back, though he wasn't sure_ why_ the man needed it... "Not a problem... I think..." the last part he said to himself and Stella, the latter letting out a small chuckle.

Leon, saying one last goodbye, was quickly fading from side between the trees. Only when he was completely out of sight, did Naruto fall to his knees and start panting hard.

His eyes darted to Stella, who looked on with an amused smile. "Remind me... to never... listen to you... again..." As it so happened, Stella had told Naruto to fight with Leon, saying it might be an easy victory...

She didn't tell him that Leon listed #79 on the Top 100 Senshu list...

Good News: Naruto was now #79

Bad News: He couldn't feel his arms, legs, fingers, feet, head, eyes, ears, tongue, and other parts on his body...

_Damn_ her...

Stella simply laughed at him in a friendly way, and began to help him to his feet.

"You did well though." She added after he was up on his feet, abet leaning on her shoulder, his arm around her neck to help support him.

Despite that man being #79 out of all the Top 100 Senshu, Naruto had handled Leon quite well. Stella would be the first to admit, even if her rank in the Top 100 _was_ #80, she really wasn't much stronger than maybe... #84 at the time.

Her rank had sense dropped to 100, but after a few matches, she had brought it up to #87. While she wasn't as strong as people thought she was before, she was now at a rank that showed her true power, and not stronger than it really was.

Why was she dropped to #100? Well, you see. When a Senshu is beaten, if they are of a greater rank than the one that beat them, they switch ranks.

Such as the case with Naruto and Stella. When Naruto (#100), beat Stella (#80), Naruto proved himself to be stronger than the #80, and thus, he obtained that rank, and Stella, showing herself to be weaker than #100, had taken that rank.

And this happens with every rank, even #101 through whatever amount of Senshu that currently existed in the world.

Another topic that had to do with Ranking. When a Senshu retired, their position was given to the next Senshu below them, and the total number of Senshu in the world dropped. The reverse was true as well, but the New Senshu was given the lowest rank of _all_ Senshu in the world...

Naruto gave her a sideways glance. "Gee... thanks..." and while he didn't _sound_ to exited, Stella had known Naruto long enough (and met enough people like him) to know that he really did feel appreciated...

_**.::Next Day – Sourin Town::.**_

Naruto let out a sigh as he stood out on the balcony of his and Stella's hotel room.

The duo had found their way to Sourin Town yesterday, and with the small amount of Ryo they had on them, had gotten a room. If they had, had the money, they might have gotten separate rooms, or at least, one with _two _beds...

Naruto stretched, and heard his spine let out a small pop. Sleeping on the couch would do that too you. When they had gotten to the room, Naruto was the first to take up residence on the couch, and Stella didn't seem to disagree...

She could have at least... _pretended_ to want to give him the bed...

Speaking of the sleeping teen...

Naruto turned his head slightly, to find said girl, hair spread across the pillows. Upon closer inspection, the blankets had only covered up to her waist, and in the position she was sleeping in, more of her cleavage was shown than normal. Naruto, lost in thought as he never really paid attention to that kind of thing, absently noticed that if he moved just a few more inches, he could see her n-!

He turned around, shaking his head, his face red. Thinking of other thoughts, he brought his mind back under control, and began to think about his travels so far...

Well... not much to think about. He had come from Kyoutou, and was on his way to Ryoutou. They still had about a day or two to go before they could get there.

Currently, it was the morning of April 20th, and Naruto was ready to set out again (and see a bit of this futuristic city).

Sourin Town was an extremely technologically advanced city. Well, as advanced as it could get. Powerful, extremely fast trains, escalators, a city full of moving walkways, things like this. A few places even had virtual screens, holograms in the air, and you could even interact with some of them.

Naruto was knocked out of his thoughts by a small moan. When he turned his head, he found Stella was sitting on the edge of her bed, eyes half closed, and one hand rubbing her right eye.

"Mornin', sleeping beauty..." Naruto said dryly as he made it obvious that it was well into the afternoon. The girl in question, seemingly just as smart mouthed as when fully awake, smirked back, eyes shut. "Thanks, your not to bad yourself handsome..." This made Naruto sigh, and look back outside, choosing to ignore her again.

Not long after they had started to travel together, Stella had soon warmed up to Naruto, in such a way that she would playfully embarrass him, after learning of him never having really talked to the opposite sex, other than his mother.

...well... suffice to say, Stella had made it painfully obvious she was going to use that against him as much as possible... and when asked, just pushed it off as 'Building up your resistance.' When asked what she meant a few hours later, she shrugged 'Not sure, let me get back to ya on that...'

Naruto heard the sound of her chuckle, and her footsteps. When the door to the bathroom shut, Naruto let out a louder sigh. He knew she would probably be in there for quite some time... and by the look of her clothing that was on her bedside, he would have to leave the room, lest he see her 90% naked... again...

He quickly announced that he was going out, just to look around. He hopped that word hadn't reached this town about the 'great' Namikaze Naruto, and wasn't challenged left and right again...

_**.::Streets of Sourin::.**_

Naruto gaped lightly as he took in everything around him. He was currently standing on a 'moving sidewalk', said sidewalk had an arrow pointing in one direction, and was colored blue.

Moving along side him, was a hologram of the 'sidewalk's' paths, which weaved throughout all of the city, and would take quite some time to go around all of it.

It wasn't long before he reached his destination, the nearby Kard Duel hall.

As he walked up to it, having stepped off of the sidewalk, abet awkwardly, and looked up at the large hologram of a match currently being broadcasted.

It was a match between what appeared to be a pair of 16 year old's. One male, one female. While the male didn't seem so different from the average, the female did.

Her black hair was pulled back into two long twin tails, much like Stella's, but each were the same length, and didn't have the curve to them that added the effect of gravity to the look as Stella's did. The girl's were strait as could be, and if a line was drawn from one to the other at the base of each, would form a triangle.

Her uniform looked like one out of a school or academy dress code. A white blouse, and white skirt, with black stockings and dress shoes.

While it was strange to see someone in that, especially on a _Saturday_, the girl oddly enough, made the look work for her.

As he stood watching, the girl suddenly pulled out a summon Kard. This made Naruto's eyes narrow. She had a Summon Kard. While he had met Souji, and the boy had two or three Kards, it had taken him a great many years to gain them. And this girl had one, so that either meant that she was a Summon Specialist, like Souji, which was rare...

or she was just that strong...

Naruto quickly looked around for a name, and found one on a scoreboard nearby.

He quickly pulled out his phone and entered the name...

Shinonono Houki.

What he found made him jump in surprise. The girl wasn't that much higher in rank than _him_!

Her ranking said #75, and it didn't say anything about being a Summon Specialist, so that meant that she was good enough to either make one by herself, or have one handed down to her by a family member or friend.

Why? Well, Summon Kards weren't bought, because they could only be made. When a Summon Kard is made, the creature that is sealed within the Kard gives the person who sealed it, permission to use them in a fight. Be it completely knowingly and peaceful, or them being tricked into it.

Once a creature gave the word, it was completely legal and 'do-able.'

When the Kard was 'broken', he was surprised to find, not an organic creature, but a mechanic one?

Behind the girl stood a large... suit of armor, for lack of a better term. It had to be at least 10 feet tall, or larger. In it's right hand, was an extremely large blade, and it seemed to be made of white armor.

Naruto was glad he didn't blink, because the moment that the Kard was summoned, the match had ended, with the male being cut in half, if the dome had not lowered.

When Naruto glanced at the scoreboard, the Kard read 'Summon:** Infinite Stratos**'.

Strange name... but what say did he have.

"Naruto!"

Hearing his name called by a familiar voice, he turned to face Stella running up to him, now fully clothed and cleaned up.

When she reached him, she looked up at the Hologram, and watched the end of the match. "Oh? She's a powerful one..." She snatched his phone from his hand, and read it, despite his argument to it. She raised a slender eyebrow. "'Shinonono Houki'? Never heard of her..." She promptly threw the phone back to Naruto, who sighed as he caught it.

They stood there for a few minutes, as Naruto knew what she was going to say next. "You should duel her."

"No." Was his simple response.

Stella turned to him, in mock surprise, and began to tug on his sleeve. "What?! You have to!" This caused Naruto's eyebrow to twitch. He turned his head to her, and looked down at her, being a good head taller. "And just _why_ is that?"

Stella paused for a moment, before she shrugged. "Dunno, but you still _have_ to!"

Naruto sighed. Usually that got her to give up, but if she was still asking him to, she wouldn't stop for the day, and he hated when she did that. He gave a nod, and began to walk into the Duel Hall. But, just as he went though, he turned back to her.

"But you have to fight too..." And abruptly walked through, not even giving Stella time to react.

She stood there, face blank, before realization dawned upon her, and she ran in after him. "Nani?! Oi, get back here!"

_**.::Duel Hall – Registration Counter::.**_

"You're really going to make me do this aren't you..." Stella sighed as she strapped the blue armband around her left bicep. Naruto had his in a similar manner, but around a different bicep, his right.

"Ya damn right. If I'm fighting, you are too. Besides..." He poked her shoulder, annoying her a bit, just because it was fun. "You and I both know that you could use some training too." he let a shit-eating 'smirk' grace his lips now.

Stella sent him a sideways glare, eye twitching dangerously. "Don't push your luck..."

Naruto's eyes gained a glint. "Or what...? You're gonna duel me again..."

Oh no... not a good idea...

Stella turned to him, crossed her arms and stood there glaring at him... then promptly lifted her leg between his and kicked with a good amount of force, bringing the very, _very_ tip of her shoe into the stupid blonde's family jewels.

Naruto's face was frozen in it's shit-eating grin like look for a few moments, Stella's foot hadn't yet moved away. When Naruto's face started to slowly change into one of pure pain and suffering, did Stella's foot lower back down.

Naruto simply fell to his knees, hands holding onto his crotch in pain, and fell to Stella's side, who was grinning at the air where his body was before he fell.

Stella turned and knelt down to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "What have we learned...?" She asked. When he groaned in response, she gave him a slight kick with her foot to his stomach, and he spoke. "Never... fuck... with you..." he answered in his own defiant way.

Stella, accepting the answer, smiled sweetly at him. "Good! Now get up, we have a match to go through." She said as she turned around and began to walk away.

Naruto groaned again. '_Why... must Kami fuck with me...?_'

_**.::Duel Lift::.**_

Naruto had his head angled up as he stood in his square red box. He had recently recovered from Stella's 'attack', and was ready to duel. Stella was next to him, calmly waiting, having placed her 'Ichi' mask on.

She did this often around situations like this. Talking to a group, she acted professional, and if she was to appear in a duel, she was on her best behavior. Something about 'keeping up appearances' or 'making less trouble for the family'...

He kind of understood, considering who his father was...

It wasn't long before there was a flash of light that lasted about a second or two, before they found themselves in a large arena. The crowd cheering for the two sides that had appeared.

Naruto had gotten what Stella wanted, and was facing off against Shinonono Houki. Due to there being to challengers for anybody, his (read:Stella's) fight request was approved (with agreement from Shinonono Houki and her partner, Orimura Ichika.)

Ichika was rumored to be one of her best friends, but was soon moving away from the country, so this would actually be their last duel together.

Good for them... bad for Naruto and Stella...

Good, because they will be fighting as best as possible... Bad for Naruto and Stella because they would be fighting _as best as possible_...

And it just so happened that they learned of this from a loud pair talking in the lobby.

Naruto let out a sigh, as the teams were introduced.

The announcer, a middle aged man with graying hair in a suit, stepped between the two teams, a microphone raised to his mouth. "Ladies and Gentlemen!" His voice echoed. "Welcome to the latest match, and most likely, one of the best the Duel Dome will ever see!"

The crowd cheered much louder at this point, some already knowing why.

The announcer pointed to his left. "To my left side, Team Blue! Consisting of Orimura Ichika, brother of the famed Orimura Chifuyu, the retired leader of Ryoutou!" The announcer then pointed to Houki, who stood with a calm face, arms crossed under her... ahem... generous chest.

"And Shinonono Houki! Sister to Shinonono Tabane! One of the top Kard creators in the world!" The crowd cheered widely again, and anxiously awaited the next team to be announced.

The announcer paused for effect, before pointing at the next team, to his right. "And on my right, Team Blue! First, The former leader of the Kyoutou Duel Hall, and daughter of the late Kuroi Taien, Kuroi Stella!" At Stella's name, she gave a small smile/smirk, and waved lightly, before looking at her opponents.

The announcer pointed to Naruto. "And Finally, a special treat for all of us... Son of the legendary Kuroii Senkou... Already making a name for himself and earning a Duel Kard from the Kyoutou Duel Hall... Namikaze Naruto!" At Naruto's _last_ name, the crowd let out ear piercing screams.

While it seemed to startle this Ichika person, Houki didn't react at all to the news, choosing to remain calm. Naruto silently commended her in his mind, but made no outward actions to display his thoughts.

The announcer once again began to speak, once the crowd had toned down a bit. "And now... Combatants... Bow!"

As with protocol with all duels to show sportsmanship, all four of the Senshu bent at the waist for a second, before returning to their upright position. Once returned to this position, all four Senshu placed their hands out into the air, waiting for the next command that was sure to come.

"...Raise the Dome!" At these three words, the crowd cheered again, and the four Senshu called upon their Ketto Kard, and quickly scanned them.

Naruto simply scanned his through this arm guard, and Stella did the same, but with the single belt on her waist.

Ichika simply crushed his Kard, much like Souji does, and Houki let the Kard vanish into the air with strange gloves she wore.

The judge grinned widely one last time, before bringing his hand up and then down, proudly yelling:  
"Duel!" Before he himself got out of the way.

Naruto was the first to make a move, quickly drawing his gun Ebony and firing two rounds. However, they were quickly deflected by Houki, who jumped in the path and swatted them aside with her Katana.

Stella smiled lightly. "Naruto. Take the girl. Her friend is mine." Without giving Naruto a chance to speak, she took off toward Ichika. She was almost interrupted by Houki, but she stopped short and took a step back when the ground in front of her was littered with bullets.

She looked at Naruto, who had his gun pointed at her, and shook his other hand. "Sorry, but... I'm your opponent." He spoke in monotone, causing the females in the stadium to scream his name, which he chose to ignore...

"Wow folks!" The judge called. "We're only a minute and a half into this fight, and it's already heating up! As Kuroi-san runs off to fight Orimura-san, Namikaze-san has taken to challenging Shinonono-san!"

Houki made a noise in her throat, but took a stance anyway. "Very well. Come!" She called, as she took off toward him, planning to test his close combat skills.

Naruto's eyes narrowed, as he reached into his cloak again, and pulled out his Black, Guard-less Katana Sendou. As he swung to meet her own blade, he saw a flash of light from her free hand, and watched her vanish, only to reappear behind him.

He looked back at her and grunted. Having no time to use his own Kards to escape, he simply twisted his body as best he could to lessen the damage. It worked to an extent. The blade passed through his shoulder in a small cut that would only leave a barely noticeable scar.

He jumped back a good few yards to gain some ground, before swiping his own Kard and matching her speed with his own.

It wasn't long before their half of the dome was nothing but bright flashes and the sound of metal hitting metal.

Stella's side however was a stand still. While the girl was completely calm, her large cannon slung over her shoulder and her body turned slightly to the right toward Ichika. The boy himself was sweating bullets from the former Ichi Senshu's onslaught of attacks. He didn't really have any long distance attacks, all he had was the sword his Sister used to use when she dueled.

So when Stella showed prowess with both forms of combat, he knew he would have a hard time. Though he was trained well by his friend Houki, he was nowhere near the level of a former Ichi Senshu. He hadn't even taken to getting his own Duel Kards besides the basic three, and one that Houki had just loaned him before the start of the match... so technically it wasn't his Kard...

Needless to say, he didn't have a good chance of winning.

The boy decided to throw caution to the wind, and charged toward the girl. He pulled out a Kard from the air and crushed it. He extended his right arm, and it began to glow a red color. As he got into swinging distance, he feinted a diagonal sweep from his right to his left.

Unfortunately, Stella was faster than him, and moved her own Katana to intercept his own, and with a few years more of experience, maneuvered her body away from the blade's path and let it fall to the ground, where it sunk about two inches down.

As Ichika stood in shock, it left him open, and it allowed Stella to put a well aimed kick to his kidney, and send him stumbling away from his blade, holding his right side in pain.

It was then... he knew he was screwed...

_**.::Naruto vs Houki::.**_

Naruto let out a small grunt, as he blocked Houki's Katana. They were both using their individual Velocity Up kards. Unfortunately Houki's happened to be a level higher. This meant that Naruto had to use his Shot Speed Kard to keep her on the defensive until her Kard ran out (which could be quite some time...)

He hissed when he felt a cut find its way to his lower back, and turns around in time to block another swing of Houki's blade with his, before taking aim and firing Ebony at her midsection.

He was disappointed however, when she twisted out of the way once again. He was getting closer though, her clothing had some holes in it...

He grunted and moved Sendou to block a cut that would have cut through his neck and ended the match for him. He took the opportunity to use the last remaining time on his Velocity Up+, to grab the girl's hand, twist her around with his superior strength, and catch her in a hold from behind, her blade hand, and open hand were caught by his right hand, and pushed up against his chest to immobilize them.

Naruto pointed the gut at her head, and panted, waiting for her to give in. When she didn't, he was shocked when she suddenly wrestled him out of the makeshift hold, and took a stance about 6 yards from him.

Naruto regained his balance after stumbling a bit. He growled and noticed that the scoreboard listed under Houki's name read 'Offense Up+'. He cursed, yet another Kard of hers that was a higher level then his.

He grunted, and decided it was time to use his new Kard. He pulled out an ability Kard, and scanned it with his forearm guard. Not a second later, the Kard vanished and a blue, transparent barrier threw itself up around him.

The announcer turned his attention to the scoreboard and let out a small gasp. "Well, would ya look at that folks! Namikaze-san has a 'Barrier' Kard in his possession, and a rare one at that!" When he finished, the Scoreboard lit up with the Kard's name, 'Regain Barrier'.

However, Naruto wasn't finished there, and brought out his... Trump Kard.

He let a small laugh pass through his thoughts at his pun, and drew out another ability Kard. When he scanned it, Sendou lit up in black fire.

He grinned darkly, slightly out of character for him, and charged.

Houki, unprepared for his sudden tactic change, simply scanned another Kard, her Endurance Up.

She took up a defensive stance, and braised herself.

Naruto, seeing her tactic, brought Sendou over his head and back down, putting all of the power in his arms into swinging it. As he did, the black energy launched itself from the blade, carving a trench in the ground as it sailed toward Houki.

"**Getsuga Tenshou**!" as the last syllable left his mouth, the dark energy struck Houki in a magnificent explosion.

Naruto, being tired and a bit cocky, thought the match over, but he was sent flying to the far end of the dome by a red blur. He landed on his back, and continued to slide, before he came to a painful stop. He lifted his head, one eye closed, and his remaining eye widened.

There was a red creature standing before him. It was machine like, and, overall, hard to explain. His eyes spotted writing, and narrowed his eyes to read it. "Akatsu...baki?"

When he put the name together, some memories started to come back to him.

Shinonono Tabane. She often came over with his mother to speak with his father. He knew she was a successful Kard creator, specializing in the area of Machine Related Kards. She had been introduced to him once, but he was young at the time.

But he did remember watching TV a few days later, where a new brand of Summon Kards were released by Tabane, called 'Infinite Stratos'. One of the rare ones, happened to be called Akatsubaki.

He gazed up at the head, where he knew Houki was. He stood up, using Sendou to keep his balance. He reflected back on what the announcer had said, and began to speak.

"So... your Tabane's sister?" He called out to her, panting hard in between every few words. His left hand was held against his stomach, where he was hit. He probably had a few broken ribs from it.

None the less, he let himself smile slightly at the girl. "I hear she's gone missing." He called again, louder this time.

Houki made another noise, before she spoke from a speaker inside the main body of Akatsubaki. "Whats it to you!" Her voice echoed as a result of the speakers.

Naruto pushed himself up again. "Well, she just happened to know my parents. 'came over every now and then to have friendly conversations and spars..." He paused here to cough a bit, when one of his ribs poked his lung, but didn't pierce it. "She had left a note... addressed to my mother, the day before she left." he let out another cough.

Houki's fist clenched, glad that he was keeping his voice low, as to not alert the crowd to this information. "Do you... Do you know where she is?" She asked, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice, but not fully ridding it.

Naruto shook his head. "No... But I have a general idea... The note just explained why she was leaving, something about research... and left a general area in the Forest Region."

Houki made a confused noise, before taking up her stance again. "Why are you telling me this? I won't throw the match..."

Naruto shook his head again. "No, I just realized who you were. Truth be told, if she found out I told you, she might... kill... me..." at this point, he began to consider stabbing himself for not thinking of it...

But somehow, Houki managed to find some humor in his words, and let out a small laugh. "Hehe... alright, well, now that were on friendly terms, lets make a wager." she exclaimed.

Naruto blinked. "A... wager...?"

Houki nodded. "On this duel. If I win, I get to tag along with you, and you have to help me find my sister, seeing as how you have some knowledge on her..." she whispered the last part to him.

Naruto nodded slowly. "And if I win...?" he somewhat feared what may come.

Houki smiled, and looked around at the crowd at the moment, before looking back at Naruto. "I'll do anything you want..." she trailed off with a wink.

At that, all of the men in the crowd yelled something along the line of 'HUZAH!', while a couple just passed out from nosebleeds... some did both... and one dude passed out first...

Naruto turned a slight red color, and ignored the sounds of Stella laughing hard in the distance as she held Ichika to the ground with her boot.

Naruto grunted. "Hump... Making a wager when you know that I'll keel over in about a minute?"

Houki put on an innocent face, but he could tell she was faking. "Why, whatever are you talking about?"

Naruto felt sweat drop down his neck and grunted. He took a stance, and pulled out a Kard from the air. With his Regain Barrier having taken that hit before, it had restored his Getsuga Tenshou Kard. It was soon in play, and all the rest of Naruto's energy was put into the attack.

"Alright fine! Try to stand up to this!" With that, he lifted the sword high, and the black fire burst to life, reaching almost 15 feet into the air. Houki took in a sharp intake of air at the sight, it had to be three times larger than before.

"Here we go! **Getsuga Tenshou**!" As the attack left the Katana, it once more left a trench in the ground after it.

Over with Stella and Ichika (who was still on the ground, now with Stella sitting on him with her large gun over her shoulder for weight, grunted. "It's... huge!"

Stella nodded. "And its the same size attack that he used to beat me." Then she went back to torturing the poor boy into submission, until he finally repented and gave in.

Houki grunted and held her arms up. '_It's huge! I don't know if I can dodge it..._' She dug her feet into the ground, and played her last Endurance Up Kard.

There was a crash, and then a loud boom as wind swept up around the arena, and up through the open roof.

When the wind and dust settled, which took a few minutes, they found Houki still standing, but down on one knee.

Naruto however, had blood flowing from his mouth. One of his ribs had finally punctured his lung, and it was filling with blood. "Guess... you win..." He made a whimpering noise, and fell down unconscious.

At that point, the dome dropped and all returned to normal. The trenches created by the Getsuga Tenshou were repaired, Houki regained her health, but continued to breath hard and have phantom pains, and Naruto's rib and lung were healed, but he remained unconscious.

Houki stood, and began to walk over to the boy, and was soon joined by a medical team, as well as the other two combatants.

Ichika expressed his, and the others, thoughts. "Will he be alright."

One of the Medical Team answered him with an affirmative, and he would be up in about half an hour's time...

_**.::3 Hours Later – Exit of Sourin Town::.**_

"So I guess I'm traveling with you." Houki said, more along the lines of a demand as she sat on Naruto's bed in their hotel room. It was about 2:30 pm. at the moment, and Naruto had woken up at at around 11:30 am.

In that time, Houki had actually gotten anything she was taking with her on her travels and explained that she wasn't just exploring to find her sister, but was also taking place in the Duel Halls, and winning a trip to Zaii Island off the cost of Forest Region's furthest reach, Crescent Island.

After her explanation, the group is seen walking through the gates of Sourin Town. Naruto cast a glance to Stella, and asked his big question.

"So... where to now?" He asked, hands in his pockets as they walked.

Stella pulled out her phone, a black sliding one, and brought up a map. "Hmm... there's a town called 'Tanzaku Mori' about a day and a half's walk from here." She flipped the phone around to show Naruto and Houki.

"Hmm... alright, I guess we go there then?" He asked them both, and got an indifferent shrug from Houki, while Stella nodded.

And so, the trio set off, soon passing through the border between the Great Plain's Region, and the Desert Region...

_**.::Later::.**_

_'April 10th_

_Time: 11:30 pm_

_Wow, that was an eventful day. We came to Sourin just to rest and pass through, but we ended up dueling in one of the Duel Halls, loosing to a girl named Shinonono Houki, and gained that same girl as a traveling companion..._

_Well... she only came with us because I had a bit of info on her sister, Shinonono Tabane, but I get the feeling she was just tired of sticking around Sourin. She had said something about her friend Ichika telling her he was heading back to wherever it was they came from, and that he wasn't fit for dueling..._

_If I could have, I would have punched him... but I'm sure Houki did... I'll have to ask her._

_But anyway, it's late, I'm tired, and sleeping here in the desert isn't fun. I can't wait to get to Tanzaku Mori tomorrow... brr... it's cold as all hell!_

_But, I'm out,_

_Namikaze Naruto_

_**.::End::.**_

**A/n: Well, that's the end of Chapter 2. I hope you liked this one just as much, if not, better than Chapter 1.**

**As always, review please! I'd love to know how I did! And if there are errors, point them out please! It would be a big help ^^.**

**See ya,**

**Narora**


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